TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a male member of a fraud ring over the attempted swindle of 4 million from an elderly woman in Katsushika Ward, reports Fuji News Network (Feb. 23).
On Wednesday, police apprehended Makoto Ishii, 67, on a road in the ward after he arrived to collect 4 million yen in cash from the 74-year-old woman.
At some point before, a person working with the suspect telephoned the woman, and falsely claimed to be her nephew, according to police. The caller told the woman that he needed money to cover a work-related problem.
Sensing that something was wrong, the woman telephoned police, who were waiting to meet the suspect when he arrived to collect the money on behalf of the nephew.
Ishii, who has been accused of fraud, admits to the allegations. “I needed money for living expenses,” the suspect told police.